We could all do with a bit of extra spending money in the lead-up to Christmas. And having a clear-out will help to ensure there's plenty of space for all the new toys your little ones will receive on the big day. It will also help you to get your home in shape so you're proud to show it off when all your friends and family stop by. So, why not take the opportunity to sell some of your existing clutter to make some extra cash and create space for the new?

There are steps you can take to give your unwanted items the best chance of selling to make the most profit possible. I'm going to outline these here.

Know what's going to make you money

When you're having a clear-out with the aim of selling items to make money, it's worth finding out what's likely to sell ahead of time. This will save you time, energy, and space, because you can donate everything else and only save what's going to make you money.

Clothes, books, DVDs, CDs and shoes typically receive a lot of attention when sold second-hand, according to House Beautiful. You can also make a pretty penny by selling on cuddly toys, kitchen appliances and gadgets, records, and unwanted computers too. So, if you have any of these lying around — and they're in good condition — selling them online or taking them along to a car boot sale is likely to be worth your while.

Choose the right places to sell your items

It's important you put plenty of thought into choosing where to sell your items, because this can have a huge effect on how well they'll sell, and how much you could make from them.

If you're interested in selling online, it's best to use specialist platforms wherever possible. For example, if you have clothing in good condition, apps such as Depopcan be a goldmine. Similarly, if you have antiques or vintage items collectors might be looking for, Selling Antiquesand Vintage Cash Coware both great.

Many of us have old jewellery and scrap gold hiding away in our jewellery boxes and selling this on isn't always easy — especially if it's personalised, broken, or old-fashioned. In this situation, consider selling your gold to a pawnbroker, as this is often the quickest and easiest way to make a decent amount of cash. At H&T we even have a tool that allows you to enter what kind of gold you have and the weight, so you can see how much money we'll give you in advance.

Make sure everything is clean and in working order

When you're trying to make some quick money by selling your unwanted items, the last thing you want is for someone to ask for a refund. You should be able to avoid this by checking everything is in working order and by giving an accurate description of your items.

It's also a good idea to make sure all of your belongings are clean and in good condition before you send them to their new home. If you're selling online, giving everything a once over before taking your photos and then again before posting your sales should keep your customers happy.

All of us go through periods when we could do with some extra cash, luckily many of us are sitting on atreasure chest of unwanted items that we could sell on. As long as you choose what you're going to sell wisely, think carefully about which platforms you're going to use, and make sure everything's clean and in working order, you should have no trouble making some quick cash.

Michael Ayres is the Valuations Manager at H&T. Here, he shares his top tips for making some money in time for Christmas by selling your clutter.